Photo: Getty Images
A Black man in Colorado was protecting his family after gunfire broke out when he was shot in the back and killed by police, according to his attorney, per CBS News.
The police shooting of 23-year-old Jalin Seabron unfolded on February 8 at The Main Event, a family-friendly entertainment venue where the victim was celebrating his birthday with loved ones, attorney Tyrone Glover said.
Prior to Seabron's killing, a separate shooting broke out inside the venue, prompting Douglas County Sheriff's deputies to respond to the scene.
Authorities said a deputy found Seabron with a gun in the parking lot of Main Event. The deputy approached the man and ordered him to the drop his gun roughly three seconds before opening fire. Only about seven seconds had elapsed between the time the deputy got out of his cruiser and shot at Seabron.
The deputy fired nine total rounds in roughly three seconds.
"My deputy heard on the radio: 'shooting, multiple reports of shots heard, gunshots,'" Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly said in a statement. "The gunman pointed his gun at several people and refused multiple commands to put his gun down before turning toward my deputy. These situations unfold very quickly, and this individual forced my deputy to make a split-second life-or-death decision. It's a decision that no law enforcement officer ever wants to make, but one that could not be avoided."
Video released by the sheriff's office shows the deputy didn't identify himself as law enforcement before firing the shots. Police alleged that Seabron turned toward the deputy, while Glover said the man was focused on protecting his family and only turned his head before he was shot in the back nine times.
"Today, video footage of the fatal shooting of Jalin Seabron by a Douglas County Sheriff's deputy has been released, confirming what Jalin's family has maintained since viewing the footage: this shooting was unjustified, unnecessary, and in direct violation of the Sheriff Office's own policies and procedures," Glover said. "The video evidence directly contradicts multiple statements made by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office regarding the circumstances of Jalin's death."
A woman was later arrested in connection to the shooting inside the Main Event. Glover said the family plans on filing a civil lawsuit against the sheriff's office.
"Jalin was in defensive mode, not attacking mode," Glover said in a statement. "If you look at the Douglas County Sheriff's Office own policies and procedures, you have to warn someone; give them an opportunity to comply with warning. You have to identify yourself as an officer of the law."
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